Inside the Files of India’s Para SF Special Forces

The Para (Special Forces),[6] informally referred to as Para SF, is a group of special forces battalions of the Parachute Regiment in the Indian Army. These units specialise in various roles including counter-insurgency, counter-terrorism, direct action, hostage rescue, special reconnaissance and unconventional warfare.[7]
The unit’s heritage stems from World War II, with the creation of the 50th Parachute Brigade in October 1941 under the British Indian Army. 9 Para (SF) was raised in 1965 as the 9th Parachute Commando Battalion (as part of the Parachute Regiment) and is the oldest among the fifteen Para (SF) units of the Indian Army. It has been involved in various operations including the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971 (including Chachro Raid), Operation Bluestar, Operation Pawan, Operation Cactus, Kargil War, Operation Ginger, 2015 Indian counter-insurgency operation in Myanmar, 2016 Pampore stand-off, 2016 Indian Line of Control strike and in several anti-terror operations.

HISTORY

Historic list of regiments

The following old lists in this section have been replaced by the present list provided in the subsequent sections:

Regiments

See also: Category:Administrative corps of the Indian Army

Armoured

See also: Indian Army Armoured Corps and Indian Armoured combat vehicles

Artillery

See also: Regiment of Artillery (India)

In the Regiment of Artillery the battalion-sized units are referred to as regiments, a point of confusion on occasion. These units are equipped and named based on their type of equipment. There are two types of units. The majority are regiments that have weapons as their equipment, such as missiles, rockets, field guns, medium guns or mortars. The second type of regiment are those that have mission support equipment, such as surveillance equipments and weapon locating radars.

Weapon equipped units

See also: Indian artillery weapons and Indian army missiles

Weapon-equipped units of the Regiment of Artillery are listed below:

 

The following units, designated as “Missile Group”, are equipped with nuclear capable ballistic missiles like Prithvi[1][2] and Agni.[3] They operate under the Strategic Forces Command.

SATA units

See also: Indian army radars and SATA equipment

Units of the Regiment of Artillery that have equipment other than weapons are listed below. These units mainly have Surveillance and Target Acquisition (SATA) equipment, Surveillance and target acquisition is a military role assigned to units and/or their equipment. It involves watching an area to see what changes (surveillance) for the purpose of enemy field artillery acquisition, then the acquisition of targets based on that information, and example of their equipment include Counter-battery radar (CoBRa) and Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) (see also Mobile Artillery Monitoring Battlefield Asset (MAMBA)).

Infantry

See also: Indian Infantry, Indian Infantry weapons, and Indian Infantry future weapons
RegimentActive FromRegimental CenterMottoWar Cry
Madras Regiment1758Wellington, Tamil Nadu“Swadharme nidhanam shreyaha” (“it is a glory to die doing one’s duty”)“Veera Madrassi, Adi Kollu, Adi Kollu” (“Brave Madrassi, Strike and Kill, Strike and Kill!”)
Rajputana Rifles1775Delhi Cantonment, Delhi“Veer bhogya vasundhara” (“the brave shall inherit the earth”)“Raja Ramachandra ki jai” (“victory to King Ramachandra”)
Rajput Regiment1778Fatehgarh, Uttar Pradesh“Sarvatra vijay” (“victory everywhere”)“Bol Bajrang Bali Ki jai” (“say victory to Lord Hanuman”)
Dogra Regiment1877Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh“Kartavyam anvatma” (“duty before death”)“Jawala Mata ki jai” (“victory to Goddess Jawala”)
Sikh Regiment1846Ramgarh Cantonment, Jharkhand“Nischay kar apni jeet karon” (“with determination, I will be triumphant”)“Bole So Nihal, sat sri akal” (“Shout Aloud in Ecstasy, True is the Great Eternal God!”) “Wahe Guruji Da Khalsa, Wahe Guruji Di Fateh” (“The Khalsa of Waheguru is victorious”)
Jat Regiment1795Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh“Sangathan va veerta” (“unity and valour”)“Jat balwan, jai bhagwan” (“the Jat is strong, victory to God”)
Parachute Regiment1945Bengaluru, Karnataka“Shatrujeet” (“the conqueror”)“Balidan Param Dharma” (“Sacrifice, Supreme Duty”)
Punjab Regiment1761Ramgarh Cantonment, Jharkhand“Sthal wa jal” (“by land and sea”)“Jo bole So Nihal, sat sri akal” (“Shout Aloud in Ecstasy, True is the Great Eternal God!”); “Bol Jawala Ma ki jai” (“say victory to Goddess Jawala”)
The Grenadiers1778Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh“Naam, Namak, Nishan” (“Name, Salt, Mark”)“Sarvada shaktishali” (“always strong”)
Sikh Light Infantry1944Fatehgarh, Uttar Pradesh“Deg teg fateh” (“Victory to charity and arms”)“Jo bole So Nihal, sat sri akal” (“Shout Aloud in Ecstasy, True is the Great Eternal God!”)
Maratha Light Infantry1768Belgaum, Karnataka“Duty, honour, courage”“Bola Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ki jai (“say victory to King Shivaji); “Temlai Mata ki Jai” (“victory to Goddess Temlai”); Har Har Mahadev (“Hail to Shiva”)
The Garhwal Rifles1887Lansdowne, Uttarakhand“Yudhaya krit nischya” (“fight with determination”)“Badri Vishal Lal ki jai” (“victory to the Great Lord Badri Nath”)
Kumaon Regiment1813Ranikhet, Uttarakhand“Parakramo vijayate” (“valour triumphs”)“Kalika Mata ki jai” (“victory to Goddess Kali”); “Bajrang Bali ki jai” (“victory to Lord Hanuman”); “Dada Kishan ki jai” (“Victory to Dada Kishan”)
Assam Regiment1941Shillong, Meghalaya“Assam vikram” (“unique valour”)“Rhino charge”
Bihar Regiment1941Danapur, Bihar“Karam Hi Dharam” (“Work is Worship”)“Bajrang Bali Ki Jai” (“Victory to Lord Hanuman”); “Birsa Munda Ki Jai” (“Victory to Birsa Munda”)
Mahar Regiment1815Sagar, Madhya Pradesh“Yash sidhi” (“success and attainment”)“Bolo Hindustan ki jai” (“say victory to India”)
Jammu & Kashmir Rifles1821Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh“Prashata ranvirta” (“valour in battle is praiseworthy”)“Durga Mata ki jai” (“victory to Goddess Durga”)
Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry1947Awantipora, Jammu and Kashmir“Balidanam vir lakshanam ” (“sacrifice is a characteristic of the brave”)“Bharat Mata ki jai” (“victory to Mother India”)
Naga Regiment1970Ranikhet, Uttarakhand“Parakramo vijayate” (“valour triumphs”)“Jai Durga Naga” (“victory to Durga Naga”)
1 Gorkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment)1815Subathu, Himachal Pradesh“Kayar hunu bhanda marnu ramro” (“better to die than live like a coward”)“Jai Maa Kali, ayo Gorkhali” (“Hail Goddess Kali, here come the Gorkhas”)
3 Gorkha Rifles1815Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
4 Gorkha Rifles1857Sabathu, Himachal Pradesh
5 Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force)1858Shillong, Meghalaya“Shaurya evam nistha” (“courage and determination”)“Ayo Gorkhali” (“Here come the Gorkhas”)
8 Gorkha Rifles1824Shillong, Meghalaya“Kayar hunu bhanda marnu ramro” (“better to die than live like a coward”)“Jai Maa Kali, ayo Gorkhali” (“Hail Goddess Kali, here come the Gorkhas”)
9 Gorkha Rifles1817Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh
11 Gorkha Rifles1918-1922; from 1948Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh“Yatraham vijayastatra” (“Victory resides where I reside”)
Ladakh Scouts1963Leh, Ladakh “Ki ki so so Lhargyalo” (“Victory to God”)
Arunachal Scouts2010Rayang, Pasighat, Arunachal Pradesh  
Sikkim Scouts2013Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh  

Mechanised

See also: Indian Army vehicles and Indian Infantry future vehicles
RegimentActive FromRegimental CenterMottoWar Cry
Brigade of the Guards1949Kamptee, Maharashtra“Pahla humesha Pahla (“first always first”)“Garud ka hu bol pyare” (“I am the son of Garuda say o my friend”)
Mechanised Infantry Regiment1979Ahmednagar, Maharashtra“Valour and faith”“Bolo Bharat Mata ki jai” (“say victory to Mother India”)

Corps of Army Air Defence

See also: Corps of Army Air Defence

The list of army air defence regiments is as follows:

Corps of Engineers

Main article: Indian Army Corps of Engineers

The corps was formed from the Sapper and Miner Groups of each of the erstwhile presidencies of British India. The Corps consists of three groups of combat engineers, namely the Madras Sappers, the Bengal Sappers and the Bombay Sappers. The list of Engineer regiments is as follows:

Army Aviation Corps

Main article: Army Aviation Corps (India)
See also: List of aircraft of the Indian Army

The Army Aviation Corps units are designated as ‘Squadrons’. Each squadron generally consists of two Reconnaissance (Recce) and Observation Flights. R & O Flights might be part of squadrons or operate independently and do not have a parent squadron (designated by an (I) in their name). The suffix ‘UH’ stands for Utility Helicopter Flights and ‘ALH-WSI’ stands for Advanced Light Helicopter – Weapon Systems Integrated.[7][8]

Squadrons
Flights

Corps of Signals

Main article: Indian Army Corps of Signals

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